Learning to spot signs of tire wear is a vital skill for ATV riders, even those who don’t do any of their maintenance or repair themselves. If you already understand how car tires wear, the same knowledge can be transferred to ATVs, especially quads. A lot of the same symptoms overlap with motorcycles too, although there are some issues that only affect four-wheel alignment. Learning to spot the common signs between vehicle classes will help multi-sport riders before they are stuck searching new motorcycle tires near me and hoping they can get a set before the next race.
Tire Wear From Overlooked Maintenance
A lot of the problems ATV and dirt bike riders experience with tires that wear out early could have been prevented with a more careful monitoring of the air pressure in those tires. If you’re spotting uneven tread wear in the center of a tire, it’s over-inflated and has been for some time. Similarly, if you’re seeing uneven wear on the outside, near the sidewall, you’re under-inflated. This works for any vehicle, no matter how many wheels it has.
Toe angle can also cause wear if it’s a little bit off from optimal, even if there are no worn out parts to replace. Correcting it early will not only save your tires, it will also help prevent excessive wear on the related parts in your suspension. Toe angle geometry is often overlooked, and it changes whenever you make changes to your suspension that affect the height of your ride. You should take the time to check out your alignment whenever you’re tweaking the suspension on your ATV, it’s just good sense if you want to get the gains you’re looking for when you make that kind of improvement.
Signs of Suspension Wear
There are also a couple of uneven tire wear patterns that can indicate some of the parts in the suspension that are built to wear have come due for replacement. Outer and inner edge tread wear that does not match the patterns seen when tires are improperly inflated indicate wear to some suspension parts, and scalloped tires indicate others are worn out. These signs frequently lead to the replacement of one or more of these parts:
- Bushings
- Shocks
- Sway bars on applicable vehicles
- Tie rods and ends where applicable
- Ball joints in applicable vehicles
Remember, OEM ATV parts are designed to wear out. Check your manual and plan ahead to take care of the maintenance before you experience a mechanical failure to get the best results and consider grabbing a performance upgrade when the time comes to replace the originals.
Finding Replacement Parts and Tires
If you’re wondering where you can find great deals on new ATV and motorcycle tires online so you can try your hand at changing a set for yourself, you don’t have to look any further than your source for the biggest online selection of accessories, clothes, and other gear. If you need to get equipped for the season, bundle everything together to save on shipping and set yourself up for all your maintenance until winter hits.
